Penalty Game
by fatty clown
Summary: Rumors have been going around the web, and it's not just about the Slasher, Dollars, or the Headless Rider. More disappearences, mystery, and another force are intertwined in Ikebukuro. How does Kokubo Yoshie get wound up in all this? IzayaOC / R
1. Content Deleted

A/N: I've only ever watched the anime, which isn't much to go off, so this story will progress as the anime progresses. It's probably odd to use non-canon characters as pairings for Durarara!!, well, for me. Which is why I am writing this now, so bear with me.

Fail title is fail title.

Summary: Kokubo Yoshie, commonly known as her screen name Bunko, is a frequent user of the local BBS. She's highly regarded for her criticism and advice, as well as her online manga and fanworks. For some reason, she stops posting on the internet suddenly. A mysterious disappearence, or perhaps just a quick hiatus? There's actually another story behind it...

Pairing(s): Izaya x OC, slight Kida x Mikado

Rating: T+, ratings may go up as soon as I get a storyline straight.

Disclaimer: I do not own Durarara!!, 'cause if I did, it wouldn't be as popular as it is.

* * *

**Penalty Game**

Chapter 1:  
Content Deleted

* * *

Kokubo Yoshie, age seventeen, Art major at the local Ikebukuro institute.

It wasn't a common name, one could even call her name _cool_.

Opposite her 'cool' name, is her plain appearance. She had black hair and brown eyes, like any other natural Japanese out there, only her hair was short and slightly disheveled. Her features are slightly chubby; cheeks smooth with baby fat, a button nose, and a round chin, not angular like those model types strutting the streets. She wasn't that tall either, just barely 5'2, and could probably be mistaken for a middle-schooler. You could even say she looked normal, if normal existed nowadays. She likes normal, since it's so rare to see normal anymore. No one's normal or natural, there's always someone wearing make-up, always getting nose-jobs, always buying the latest trends, from little kids to old women. Always someone wanting to be different from their usual self, but only becoming part of a larger group of wannabes.

Even she was wearing some new apparel; a black North Face jacket, brand new Jordan Ol' School's, and recently bought Panache glasses with a high prescription.

In her latest online series, she had pondered over how she should design her characters to fit the needs of her audience. In the end, they ended up being those 'hot' trendy characters, over-using the hip Harajuku-pseudo. Not that she didn't like the Harajuku fashion, in fact, she adored the variety. Recently, she's come to love the Victorian-esque stylings of Alice and the Pirates... anyway, the point is is that she felt she was becoming too repetitive in her routine life.

And from this revelation, Yoshie decided it was time to change some of her habits.

"Eureka! Suck it, suck it, suck it!" Yoshie screamed into her headset, eyes focused on the the television screen infront of her as her fingers played with the controller in her hands. Her brother had gone through a lot of trouble to ship the Xbox 360 out to her, he prevailed, and now here she was, reclaiming the once lost Halo 3 skills she once prided over. For the past three hours, she had played nonstop, winning MVP each round and bellowing vulgar words into the headset when she did. It was one of the little out of character things that made up her bad habits.

"Oho," a voice came from behind, startling her. Of shock, she accidently pressed down on the LB, chucking a grenade at an explosive, betraying atleast three of her teammates just as the new match had begun. Whispering 'shit' under her breath, she turned around to face the person who cost her the match, having been booted for the gruesome betrayal. "Don't scare me, that made my stomach-!"

Yoshie adjusted her glasses, frowning. "Again..."

Like many times before, she'd hear a remark or snicker, mocking her, always in the same husk voice. Everytime she'd turn around, nothing, not even a breeze or trace someone had been there. She would have been scared, had she not already accepted paranoia would get her nowhere. Many times before also, she'd feel something like claws digging into her shoulder, but went to feel nothing. In actuality, she was somewhat comforted by the mysterious unknown presence that seemed to follow her, when not startled by their voice studdenly making itself known.

"I think... maybe I'll head out today," she mumbled. "Yeah- I heard there's a new Jump comic that's released today."

Grabbing her mp3 player and jacket, she slipped her arms through and rested the studio headphones around her neck as she stuffed the iPod in her pant pocket after selecting 'shuffle.' She also slipped some pocket money into her coat, in case she wanted do to some last minute grocery shopping; she had been craving pocky for some time now and it seemed like a good time to get it.

---

Ikebukuro wasn't somewhere she was familiar with, since she had recently transferred from America as an exchange student. It didn't feel as large as it looked because of the always busy streets and sidewalks, but it definitely seemed dangerous. Besides traffic and the hustling of business men and students, it's a relatively calm city, until the neighing of a horse and the rumbling of a motor brakes it, or someone yells out potty words as some yield sign comes flying out of nowhere, or some wannabe gangsters are 'yanking dat cameltoe' and attempting to rap. It seems to rather only attract the wind in their pants though.

Sighing, Yoshie slid her jacket to her waist and tied its sleeves in a knot around her. It was hotter than the forecast predicted, something she wasn't too delighted about. She had always been one for mild weather, rather a hot, humid day.

"Thanks," she placed some coins infront of the vendor and grabbed the new Weekly Jump, which happened to be the last on the shelf. Raising the book to eye level, she immediately skimmed through the magazine before continuing on her way. It was a habit of hers to do that to any book before actually reading it, deducting which articles she was actually interested in; like the new Tegami Bachi: Letter Bee chapter.

"Noo! Yumacchi, look, it's sold out- the new Jump!" A girl moaned in disappointment, clinging to an equally saddened male.

Yoshie glanced at back at the couple, only to adjust her glasses and continue her pace. Absorbed in irrelevant thoughts opposite the matter, she accidentally strode into a wall. Rather, she had thought it a wall, but it was actually a person. Despite having only lived in Ikebukuro for a little less than half a year, Yoshie already knew some of the deadly threats in the city. It was only her luck that this person had to be one of them. Heiwajima Shizuo, the blonde bartender bodyguard. Catchy, right? Miss Kokubo nicknamed him that herself.

"Ah," she nodded her head slightly in acknowledgement, eyes slowly working themselves up the man to meet his eyes. Having been only as tall as to his chest, it felt slightly intimidating to stand under his gaze, so she took a step back and shrugged the discomfort away. "Uh, sorry."

He ignored her and looked away, intense eyes glaring straight ahead of him, hands stuffed in his pockets.

Waiting until he was some distance away, like most did when feeling like they had just been confronted by danger, she took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Shocked, or maybe enthralled? She couldn't really make out the impression she had gotten from the man, but it felt somewhat inspirational. People like him were only a specialty of Ikebukuro, or what makes Ikebukuro special. The Headless Rider, color gangs, the Dollars, the Slasher...

"Crap!"

The crowds of people seemed to scurry away from the scene, as Shizuo was once again on the move. This particular time, he had chosen to throw an entire convenience store trashcan at whoever had pissed him off. From what Yoshie could make out, a black-haired man, in his 20's, wearing a parka- who seemed to recover rather quickly, pulling out a flickblade. There were others there too, but she was too overwhelmed to take much notice of them.

"Would they classify as bishounen?" she asked herself, sorting the possible ideas for a new dojin. "Definitely a good couple... the black-haired one is small enough to be an uke compared to Heiwajima Shizuo, but Heiwajima Shizuo's personality may come off as rebellious, which is a pretty appealing trait in an uke... could tsundere be used to define him, maybe? I'm still not very familiar with the internet slang around here..."

Then it came to her attention the danger of the situation, should she help, and why? That was usually the mistake of the heroine in any manga, try to stop a fight, thinking they might be able to do it because... well, they're the main character. But on the other hand, the three students might be in trouble... or did she just want to see if something cool would result of her actions, like in most stories?

"I've only just realized I'm putting myself in such miserable contradictions, nothing's like in comic books," Yoshie frowned, feeling her head begin to ache and pulse. She massaged her temple, resting her recently bought magazine under her other arm. "Alright, Kokubo Yoshie, we're just going to go buy some groceries and forget this event ever occurred. Yup."

-- _Bunko has joined the channel._

_Kanra: Good evening!_

_Bunko: Good afternoon._

_Bunko: Did you hear about the Heiwajima Shizuo incident?_

_Kanra: Which one?_

_Bunko: Earlier today. He suddenly threw a vending machine out of no where, plus I heard the 'Dollars' were involved also._

_Kanra: Oh, I was there~. I also heard that they picked a fight with Heiwajima Shizuo._

_Bunko: Same here, I was buying the new Jump at the time. Hn... Did they? I don't really think it was the real Dollars._

_Kanra: Oho, the one with Noizi Ito's special interview? _

_Kanra: Well, you should avoid them, the Dollars, anyway._

_Bunko: Yeah. I'm a huge fan of her work. Thanks, I'll keep that in mind._

_-- Tanaka Tarou has joined the channel._

_Kanra: You didn't move here too long ago, I'm surprised you're already aware of the color gangs._

_Bunko: I did some research... Ikebukuro is quite the city._

_Bunko: 'Afternoon, Tanaka Tarou-san._

_Tanaka Tarou: 'Evening, Bunko-san!_

--

It was getting late, almost twelve. She had spent atleast an hour chatting with Kanra, whom also seemed to have nothing better to do than type on the BBS. Procrastinating wasn't a usual habit of hers, not with her manga updates, but today she didn't feel like working on anything. Typing to Kanra seemed more appealing than fumbling over her own college projects and doujinshi, but it was late and she had to go to bed.

_Bunko: Goodnight, Kanra-san._

Deciding she would lay off some updates on her personal website, Yoshie left the BBS open in one tab and opened another and typed in her web address where she logged into edit her content. In the middle of typing the announcement, her modem was pulled from it's cord and her hard-drive crashed with the repetitive beeping noises, the room's lights flickering ominously.

_-- Bunko has disconnected from the channel._

There was that same feeling again, the nails digging into her shoulder, the mysterious invisible force. It always came when she did something out of routine, something not on the list of what she used to do when she started adapting to Tokyo. She was sure it wasn't her imagination, or even something to do with her physical condition, but more of a 'it-is' experience. There's no possible explanation, it just seems to occur, stirring a flurry of emotions. What it was... that was hexing her, she did not know, but right now- she was scared of this presence. It was a different shadow, a different empty space behind her, not the one she was accustomed to.

And that was when Kokubo Yoshie suddenly went missing.

_Kanra: Sweet dreams._

_-- All channel users are offline._


	2. Override

A/N: Thanks everyone for adding Penalty Game to your story alerts! This chapter is written in the perspective of Izaya and Shinra, enjoy.

This chapter may contain spoilers if you haven't recently caught up to the anime! Read at your own risk, and I'm sorry this is short! I'll make up for it next chapter, which will be out soon.

Disclaimer: I do not own Durarara!!, I still wish I did.

* * *

**Penalty Game**

Chapter 2:  
Override

* * *

Orihara Izaya woke up content that morning, he had gotten to see the new face in Ikebukuro, caused more misery to Heiwajima Shizuo, and have fun all at the same time. Just last night, he had been talking to Bunko, who even he did not know the identity of. Whoever Bunko was, she must have led a very collected life style to be overlooked so easily. Izaya knew though, that if he really did want to figure our who she was, it wouldn't take long to find out.

He was the infamous information broker, after all.

- but the thought never crossed him, 'if its too easy, why try at all?' If it were fun, that would be an entirely different matter.

Turning his chair round and round, Izaya began to ponder on the week's events. It was very fun, the most fun he had in a long time. Placing his feet firm on the ground, he stopped the chair from spinning and turned towards his computer monitor. People were usually online around this time, since it was a weekend and they wouldn't have to worry about school. He turned on his computer and waited for it to boot up.

_-- Kanra has joined the channel_

_Tanaka Tarou: Setton-san, did you hear the news earlier?_

_Setton: Yes, it's unfortunate, isn't it?_

_Tanaka Tarou: What type of person does that? That's not right, and they haven't caught the suspect yet!_

_Setton: They say the victims suffer from hypothermia, the cause is unknown and the victims have no memory of what happened._

_Tanaka Tarou: It's a mystery._

_Tanaka Tarou: Oh, good morning, Kanra-san! I didn't know you were in here._

_Kanra: Don't worry, I just got on._

_Kanra: Did you know the victims were all attacked at the same time? Isn't that scary? And I heard a few of them died before help could arrive..._

_Tanaka Tarou: No way, that means there was more than just one person? Do you think maybe the color gangs did it?_

_Setton: It's impossible, how do you explain the hypothermia?_

--

"Yes, yes," Izaya laughed, quickly trying to end the conversation he was having on the phone. "Alright, I got it. This is a very important matter, right? Just leave it to me to find her, faithful client."

A business man from Ikebukuro who was recently caring for his brother's youngest daughter while her parents were overseas called, saying she hadn't called him yesterday evening to take her to work. When he went to bring food for her that afternoon she wasn't home and the hired help said she had been in her room all day. Instead of calling the cops, he decided to get Izaya, an alternative to making a big deal of the disappearance. His option was understandable, no superior head of a leading franchise company wants to be held responsible for a missing person, nonetheless a relative he was trusted with. It was a small matter, but Izaya had yet to receive a job that day, so he accepted the proposal- fee included.

With a sigh, he began to dial a contact on his cell phone. It rang only a few times before a person on the other side answered, "_Yes_?" A male.

"I need you to check into something," the black-haired devil spoke in sing-song. "An old client of mine's niece seems to have disappeared overnight, I'm sending you the information right now."

Another missing person, just one of many. It wasn't uncommon in Ikebukuro or Shinjuku nowadays, especially with the kidnapping of illegal aliens by Yagiri Pharmaceutical, the Headless rider, and the Slasher. Everything revolved around the crimes, the common things, and the mysterious phenomena. "Also," he added, "Take care of things in Shinjuku for a little. I'm doing a little project."

"_You bastard, stop playing games and take your line of work seriously!_"

"I'm taking it very seriously, Yamada," Izaya hissed into the phone, "You've heard of the Shinjuku-Ikebukuro disappearences, right? They're completely unrelated to the recent kidnappings. I've been looking into it; girls aren't just disappearing, they're being found in their own homes or wandering the streets suffering from amnesia and hypothermia, which is a mystery in itself. But I'm getting bored, so I'm making things more interesting from now on. Goodbye!"

Snapping the cellphone shut, he slid it into his pocket, not expecting the man to try and call back anytime soon. If he was smart enough, he'd give up and realize that Izaya was superior, that it wouldn't be any use to try and persuade the information broker into thinking in his ideals. Orihara Izaya wouldn't listen others, because he's the maximum override above humans, he knew that all too well.

Everything is for the sake of his own amusement. Even humans were his to enjoy, which were the most capricious of his toys.

--

"Boss doesn't need her, so once you fix her up, do whatever you want with her," a man in a suit said sternly, "Just make sure our secrets safe, we trust you."

Shinra looked wearily at the broken girl in front of him and frowned up at the man, tracing a cut along the girl's wrist that extended until her forearm. It was shallow, but left a gash deep enough to allow blood to flow. She looked young, like a seventh grader, and to think something so horrible happened to her... but she was alive, pulse barely steady and breathing heavily. He moved his forefinger down to the indent between her wrist and palm and held it there steadily, looking at the clock on the wall for a whole minute before withdrawing.

"Sixty-nine..." he sighed, "Heart rate's average, it skips a few beats, though..."

"You'll be able to heal her?"

"I'm no saint. I might be able to sew up these cuts, but the blood she loss won't come back on its own. She'll probably die anyway."

Just barely, his lips curved into a smile, small and worn. He raised a hand at the man, shooing him off. Raising a brow, the bulk gave a very slight glare but quickly waddled out of the room. Stopping just as he was at the entrance, he didn't leave without saying to the doctor, "_We trust you_."

--

Izaya's eyes were stuck to the computer screen in front of him. It was late, he acknowledged it and worked faster as minutes ticked by. Speed was crucial, he had to do this fast, because if he did he might just have hit the jackpot when accepting the recent information trade offer from Shiradou Publishing's underground representative. One-hundred million yen for every detailed report on the unpublicized victims; including their personal background history and the condition they were last seen in.

They were cautious, giving him only a set time of thirteen hours to conduct research and organize it into a seperate file that they would recieve by hand.

Of course, it was only understandable a publishing firm doesn't want to be caught buying information on things that even the police were having to keep secret. They wouldn'd use the information right away though, because that would be more than suspicious. As soon as each story was released, they would be the first to sale, and hot news sales fast- meaning more cash rolls in.

A simple plan, but not easily suspected if timed right.

Despite having said he was doing a research project earlier, this wasn't it. Yamada, one of his affiliations, had recieved the offer but apparently couldn't keep up with it because of the conditions given. Which led to this terrifying scene: Orihara izaya, grinning like a mad man as he pounded on his keyboard, determined to make the load worthwhile. With every pound he let out a laugh, fitting for his hysterical smile.

"Yamada's really useless sometimes," Izaya sang, making note to kill him later.

Without a doubt, he knew Yamada was deliberately pushing the task on him.

* * *

A/N: Please note that Yamada is no real character in Durarara!! as far as I know, but just a filler character to save me from explaining them as 'man' or 'woman' all the time. Next chapter we will be back to Yoshie! Thank you for reading, please R&R!


	3. Unable to Reload

A/N: Sorry this chapter took so long. I wasn't exactly sure how I would introduce Izaya and Yoshie to eachother, or how to portray the new Yoshie- yes, a _new_ Yoshie- so I pretty much threw something together and it will all hopefully make sense in the near future. Warning, probably some OOCness. Just for the record, the business man's niece from last chapter doesn't refer to Yoshie, merely to imply how common the disappearences were.

EDIT: Revised the first half of this chapter. Instead of 'fairies', I used spirits. Continuing to press the idea of fairies just didn't seem to overlap with Celty's character, so I decided to change the element to another. Spirits seems to just substitute the ideas of fairies though, so I hope to further exploit this idea in later chapter- so it will all eventually make sense.

Disclaimer: I do not own Durarara!!, but am currently working to receive the rights to it. Not.

* * *

**Penalty Game**

Chapter 3:  
Unable to Reload

* * *

Izaya had dealt with plenty of cases that week involving missing persons; wives of clients, daughters, nieces, all of them sharing only one common trait- being a woman. The whole affair didn't make sense, unless they shared other common relations. He couldn't bother with trying to find it out, it was absurd enough as it is, trying to keep the Yagiri cases separate from the others.

It was also getting boring, since the missing were found as easily with or without his help. That's why, when Shinra asked him a favor, he didn't even take the time to negotiate or tease the man and accepted the proposal as soon as it was offered. The doctor told him, "Take care of someone for me." And he agreed, before asking what exactly the doctor meant by 'take care of'. The phrase could mean countless things, like 'to kill', 'to beat up', 'to hide', or to simply take care of something and so on.

Now he was a babysitter for an amnesiac named Kokubo Yoshie, who was the supposed legend that hacked Yagiri Pharmacy many weeks prior to her stay.

The information broker had been filled in on the whole story by Shinra and found it relatively shocking, the news of what had occurred to her- as much as Yagiri knew from when they found her. A girl with black hair and brown eyes that appeared to be very young, but attended and transfered to a prestigious art college at the age of seventeen, was the person the Yagiri were after. They knew her name, but the person they found was completely different from the information they had recieved, courtesy of Izaya himself which is guaranteed it's either been tampered with or one-hundred percent correct. Izaya would have hoped it the latter, but even he makes mistakes.

An obstacle that kept from identifying her was the new figure she bore; she looked older than her apparent junior high body, and had grown at least an inch or two from her recorded height. Her defining traits had also dramatically changed. She was found wandering around a desolate part of the city which was being considered for reconstruction, unable to make out the things in front of her, limping from extended use of her strained ankle.

At first, she had been kidnapped out of mere interest, then it came to their notice her face was identical to the hacker, rather _was the hacker's face_, who had gotten a hold of restricted information weeks prior. This information was something Yagiri Namie couldn't let out into the public, so she intended to use the girl for experiments, but Yoshie's amnesia came to her notice and she left the girl in Shinra's care.

Taking a good look at the amnesiac, he noticed her face was pale, lips almost purple and swelling, eyes dull and strenuous in appearance but prominent with her golden stained irises- just as how they had been yesterday and the day before, and so forth. Her supposedly natural hair color of black was now almost a shade of gray, and disheveled with uneven growth, reaching past her shoulders in the back and to her collarbone in front, bangs covering down to the bridge of her nose.

She seemed to not care about being the presence of a complete stranger, nor did she seemed alarmed to not remember exactly why she was there, why she was covered in scars and bruises, and why she appeared so differently from her recorded appearance.

Or maybe, she hadn't noticed the changes, because - of course- she had amnesia, and remembered nothing of what she looked like before.

The answer seemed to be the latter, which made sense in the simplest means.

"Ori..."

"Hm?" Izaya responded to her incoherent murmuring. "You say something?"

"... -aya..."

He scrutinized her, staring at her eyes, which were directed toward her hands that rested in her lap.

"O-ri-ha-ra I-za-ya," she mouthed his name slowly with her lips, "did you know spirits exist... in this world?"

What nonsense was she talking? He could have thought, but found it amusing nonetheless of the conversation the girl was beginning. Honestly, Izaya didn't feel too comfortable talking with the girl, but wanted to continue the conversation to find out more about her. She was a girl with gray hair and golden eyes, she had happened to invert from common to unusual in just a short period of time. It was only common sense to be curious.

"Spirits? I can't say I _did_ know, I was most definitely aware of the probability they _may have_ existed," he replied, lips curving into a smile.

For the first time in a while, the girl's gaze left her lap and seemed to wander around the room. They were in an office, which was more than decent in size and quality, one side of the wall a window from floor to ceiling. On one side, a book shelf full of - you guessed it- books. Only feet away from the window, was a desk, where Orihara sat, twirling ever so slowly in his chair. Yoshie was resting against the wall opposite the book shelf, legs outstretched infront of her.

Quickly darting back to her lap, she glimpsed at the man with mutuality.

"That isn't a proper answer," she whispered, almost sarcastically, but her face said otherwise. "...I'm constantly being harmed by those creatures, a particular one actually. It seldom reveals its face, but its voice gives me such chills."

You find fear in what you can't see but are aware of, she thought, beginning to feel anxious all over again.

Red eyes made contact with eachother and they stared at eachother for some time. One without emotion but deep down drenched in anxiety and fear, the other with unhidden amusement and wonder waiting to be quenched.

"Spirits play pranks," her words were very scarce, dropping just below a whisper. "They take them so far... to even injure the human who is a victim of their twisted fun."

"I'm not quite following, 'least I think I'm not," Izaya stood up, pacing along the wall and to the girl. He leaned down, taking a good look at the girl, watching her expression twist obscurely, but visible. "You're pretty much saying you've seen _ghosts_, right? Hahaha, that's not very uncommon."

"I'm scared."

I'm really scared, she began to scream inwardly.

"I'm really scared of him, I'm scared of that guy. Scared... so scared. He's scary, scary... so scary. Scary-"

Yoshie began to break down, a hand digging itself into her hair, the other clawing at the skin around her heart. This fear, it wouldn't diminish, the uneasiness beginning to affect not only her mind but her body, too. Even though she couldn't remember anything of her life before now, she could still remember this feeling of complete terror. The fear of being caught in a game with _that thing._

"I don't want... don't like..." she bawled, "...to... this feeling... being afraid."

_You were never meant to be a spectator, Kokubo Yoshie._

Bringing her hands to her ears, she let out a scream. "I don't want to hear it anymore! No more!"

--

"Thanks, Yamada," Izaya greeted the man, brushing a hand on his shoulder as they passed. "She's an odd one, but make sure to feed her something. Shinra said he'd come by and give her a check-up. Oh, and when you leave, please don't forget to lock the door. I'm afraid she's paranoid."

"Whatever," Yamada groaned, shrugging the other's touch away. He was in a bad mood, incredibly cranky from all the errands he had done for Izaya and his own boss, which ended in success after endless hardships or in complete failure where his effort was worthless. It was really stupid, now he had to babysit a mentally unstable girl for the rest of the day. Of course, he could have just refused the job, had he known what it was before accepting it. He didn't ask about it, and concluded it would be some information digging for Izaya's clients.

"Pardon the intrusion..." opening the door to the office, he peeked in. When he couldn't see anyone, he figured the girl had gone to the restroom. Just as he was shutting the door, back to the room, he felt a hand on his arm, which made him leap in surprise. Quickly, he turned around, eyes slowly moving down to look at the girl. She was short, barely reaching his shoulders, and was incredibly thin. So that's why he told me to get food, he thought, staring briefly at her face and then down to her legs. She wasn't wearing anything but a white dress shirt, that was extra large and stretched to past her thighs. It was buttoned down all the way, so it hid any other flesh besides her lower legs. Being a big shirt, it revealed bits of her shoulder and the sleeves covered past her hands.

"Hi... there?" Yamada's voice trembled slightly, still shocked from the sudden experience.

"Did you know... the voice tells me to kill someone?"

--

"Damn- this is such bull!" Yamada cursed, closing the door behind him. Of all days he decided to babysit someone, said-person has to have a sudden urge to commit homicide.

"Huh? Yamada... was it, why're you out here?"

Kishitani Shinra. Just on time.

"That girl is trying to kill me, Shinra, it's not even funny!" he bellowed, running behind the doctor. It really didn't matter to him if he was acting like a child or not, being a grown man scared by an unarmed girl, but she had clearly tried to strangle him- and told him she would. Izaya never did tell him _how paranoid_ she really was, Yamada would have to bother him about that later. Thinking more about it, it could have been Izaya's intention to put Yamada in perpetual danger, _he was that evil_, too. It was common knowledge that the information broker was someone who took jokes to a whole new level.

"Kokubo Yoshie-san tried to? That's odd, and why would she try to kill you?" Shinra smiled, eyes shutting from the force of his beam.

Oblivious much?! Yamada almost screamed, but kept the thought to himself.

"I mean, you're not really worth the effort," the doctor laughed, putting a hand on the doorknob. "One, two..."

"What the hell are you doing? She's gonna kill us!" Yamada panicked, ignoring the curt remark he had recieved. It was like Shinra had known what he was thinking, but that could be saved for later, right now the obnoxious doctor was about to open a door to a homicidal lunatic. Then the doctor laughed, sensing the other's distress and removed his hand from the door. "-Shinra! I swear, you'll be the death of me."

"What? I don't want to be responsible for that," he mock whined, before pushing open the door. "Just kidding."

"No-"

Yamada was going to wet himself, but reminded himself that he was a man, and men don't do that stuff when faced against a little girl. This girl's scary though, like a ghost, he yelped inwardly, unable to contain the inching apprehension in his heart. Never had he been approached by death, in the form of a girl nonetheless, and he was superstitious, which only seemed to intensify unwanted dread. What if she was a spirit, on earth for the sole purpose of haunting him? These thoughts couldn't stop spilling into his mind until Shinra snapped him out of it.

"Geez, I wouldn't expect an old man like you to get so worked up-"

"Shut it, Shinra! I'm not old, I'm twenty-six- which is only three years older than you... and that girl can't be human! It's like something out of the those Higurashi series- no, like the Grudge! Like when that crazy ghost is climbing up the pipes to get to... AH!"

She was standing in the door way, looking as innocent as any attempted homicidal individual could look to a victim. "Doctor... the voice says you'll fix me."

"Yes, yes, I'm here to fix you up," Shinra's smile sustained the whole time, entering the apartment. "I'll check your legs first, it seems you're having no trouble walking- your healing skills are extraordinary for such a frail looking body. I hope you don't mind, I'd like to take a blood-"

A hiss escaped Yoshie's lips, teeth grit with her lips pursed back. Her nose was scrunched back and eyebrows furrowed, eyes hostile as they glared at the doctor. Taken aback, Shinra laughed it off, sliding past her and into the office. "Alright, no blood samples... maybe next time?"

A cat, Yamada thought.

She hissed at me like a cat, Shinra gulped, setting down his kit on the ground. He motioned for her to sit on the sofa in front of him, which she did very carefully. Stretching out her legs, she watched him hit her a couple times with a 'reflex hammer', kneeling infront of her, which she took as a chance to kick him in the gut. His face distorted from a somewhat shocked expression, to a constipated look as the pain settled in, which calmed down to an almost teary-eyed appearance, before he recovered and he fell back on his but.

"Guess I deserved that...."

Yoshie blinked, staring solemnly at the wall.

"Hungry."

* * *

Reviews encourage me to write soberly.


	4. Virus Infection

A/N: I just realized I've been putting the title into each chapter. Ah well, might as well keep it.

Regarding reviews, don't worry, I hope to keep Yoshie's paranoia to a minimum in the upcoming chapters, but it's supposed to play a part in the plot I have planned. And thank you everyone, it's fun reading what you all have to say and encouraging to me.

Disclaimer: I do not own Durarara!!, but it's good to dream.

Warning! OOCness.

**

* * *

**

**Penalty Game**

Chapter 4:  
Virus Infection

* * *

"S-sorry... sorry... I'm sorry."

Kokubo Yoshie didn't know what had happened to her, but she had felt dirty and disgusted by herself. She didn't want to be touched, in fear of further spreading her filth. Coughing blood, she attempted to cover it up with her hand, pressing the palm against her lips and under her nose. Cold skin felt numb, only burning as tears began to trail to her chin. I'm scared of blood, she sobbed to herself, I don't like it at all.

"Shinra, the trouble child's experiencing some difficulties," Izaya joked, talking with the doctor over the phone, which was hardly audible to the whimpering mess of a girl. "See you then."

He hung up, exhaling deeply afterward. "Yoshi, really?"

"...ngh... sorry..." she continued to weep, pressing a hand hard to her abdomen. On her knees, she tried to stand up, wanting to clean up the mess she had made on the floor of his office. Izaya came to her and suggested she sit on the couch, but she denied, until he pushed her into the seat. He brought her a blanket and told her to lay down, setting a small trash bin next to her, repeatedly trying to keep her down on the couch. At the end of it all, he was also covered in blood, breathing heavily from trying to calm her.

"... you musn't... should... not..." Yoshie lamented, "... do not touch me!"

"Are you truly human? Or maybe you're insane?" the broker asked, mostly himself rather than the girl. "Never have I been in such a predicament... it's amusing, but on the other hand, very strenuous. Oh, well... Are you hurting badly, Yoshi?"

Unable to get a response aside from her incoherent murmurs, he approached her side, which seemed to panic her greatly. She tried to stand up once again, to avoid being close to him, but that triggered the man to move closer. "Tell me," Izaya sneered, "why are you so difficult? I can't help you at all like this. As a human being, shouldn't you be thankful, grateful, that there is someone so close who can lessen your pain?"

"How can you comfort me when you... don't know where the pain is coming from? How can you console me at all?!" she finally said, staring with wide eyes at him.

"Haa. It's easy to tell why you're suffering if you're muttering about it every moment of every day. That voice, right? The voice in your head that tells you 'kill, kill, kill' is hurting you so much, huh!" he snorted, "I'm envious, that something invisible to the human eye can cause you so much pain. Even so..."

Izaya grabbed her arms, pulling her into him. He embraced her, holding her close as she tried to struggle. "I can easily comfort you like this. Does it feel good?"

--...

"Sorry, you came all the way out here," both men sighed at the same time.

"No, it's a good thing I could check up on her- it was just her stomach acting up- still, I thought it might have something to do with internal damage to her organs. But it wasn't, so just make sure you get her the medicine I wrote down."

"Thank you," Izaya chimed, walking them out of his office. "See you, have a safe trip back."

He looked over to Yoshie, who was now watching television lying down. It was 'Ninja Warrior', a popular show, even in America. She seemed to react to it, her lips twitching at times it almost looked like a smile. Bipolar, he deemed her, feeling her tone always changed after one of her episodes. Yoshie was usually more relaxed and carefree after a panic attack, but usually got jumpy and emotional right before one. He'd have to look out for hints in the future.

"_Voice_? Heh, interesting."

_-- Kanra has joined the channel._

_Setton: You're right, it's very odd._

_Kanra: Hello, guys~._

_Tanaka Tarou: Oh, hello Kanra-san!_

_Tanaka Tarou: I wonder what she's up to, it isn't like Bunko to be on such a long hiatus._

_Kanra: Oho, maybe she was kidnapped? Or a 'mysterious disappearance'?_

_Setton: Can't be..._

_--..._

"This... is Ikebukuro?" Yoshie asked, keeping close to Izaya.

_... zz... buzz..._

"It looks plain now, but as soon as we turn this cor..." his voice was washed away by the many people making their way down the road. Many of them were old men in business suits, foreigners, high school students, even young mothers with their children. They all seemed to walk in completely different directions, making it seem impossible to walk ahead without bumping into someone, but as the two walked down the street, the others evaded and continued on their way. Everytime a person would brush against the girl's shoulder, she would pull her arms close and stare around in confusion.

It only took a matter of minutes until she lost her guide, looking around terrified. She whispered to herself, "A lot of humans... if there are a lot of humans I can find him... But I don't know how to deal with crowds at all..."

Yoshie wandered, but always happened to return to the same spot after awhile. Pacing herself, she decided to find somewhere quiet, not too far from where she lost the man. She ended up further away from where she had been before; in other words, she had lost the way even more. Eventually, she stumbled upon a park, just at the sun was lowering back into the horizon. It created a pastel effect, which comforted her in her misery.

"Trees are the prettiest in this light... water and the sky, too..." she approached the fountain, staring gently at the sky, "I wish it was like this all the time... it's not too bright... or too dark..."

_... buzz ..._

Something in her head flashed bright, blinding her eyes. There was a ringing in her ears, blurring her mind and pulsing at her skull. She clutched her head in pain and fell to her knees at the side of the fountain, her thinking and eyesight becoming unfocused. Yoshie's breathing slowly began to become heavy, before turning into short shallow breaths, and back to deep, strained ones. I have to find him, she reminded herself, trying to stand up.

"Excuse me! Are you alright?" a boy's voice called out to her.

Looking up, her eyes were teary, which made the other furrow their brows in concern.

The stranger was a student, dressed in a teal uniform, he had short black hair and light gray eyes. He was talking to her, at least trying to. She couldn't pay attention to him though, but his voice through the awful ringing was beginning to calm her down. The student noticed it, so he continued to whisper things to her until he pulled his cell phone out.

"I'll call for an ambulance..." she heard him say, watching through blurred eyesight him dialing a number into his phone.

"Please don't! If you send me there... I won't be able to find him!"

"What... find who?" he asked, stammering to close his phone.

Yoshie couldn't answer, she just held her head, trembling with fear. The pain was still present, but the terror creeping inside her was even more perceptible, enough to make her freeze up and try to drop all her senses to escape the anxiety. Her face was solemn, staring blankly ahead towards nothing in particular. The boy put a hand on her shoulder and realized she had lost consciousness, not reacting to anything he did.

"What should I do...?"

--...

"I'm getting closer to solving this mystery," Izaya snickered.

He had been following Yoshie, deliberately hinted her towards the park all to plan out this encounter. If anyone could unknowingly unleash Yoshie's memories, it would be Ryuugamine Mikado. Izaya just knew there was something about Yoshie that was a key part in figuring out the recent disappearances of women between Shinjuku and Ikebukuro. And if anything, her memories would lead him to the truth.

"... I'm flattered, even in her pain, she thinks only about me."

The information broker then watched the pair leave, Yoshie's arm draped over Mikado's shoulder. He jumped onto a bench, balancing on the head of the backboard. Making his way to the end, he jumped down, holding his arms out like he had just performed an amazing stunt. "I really can't wait, Yoshi. What will you do next to amuse me?"

_-- Tanaka Tarou has joined the channel._

_Tanaka Tarou: Hello, everyone._

_-- Bunko has joined the channel._

_Tanaka Tarou: Bunko! Long time no talk._

_Bunko: Virus._

_Tanaka Tarou: Huh?_

_Bunko: Corruption. Virus. Unable to... data corrupted. Virusvirusvirusvirusvirusvirus_

_Bunko: virus scanning... VIRUS virus virus infection detected hard drive unprotected ACCESS failed  
__restoration unable VIRUS viruvirusvirusVirusvirusVIRUSvirusVIRUSVIRUS. initiating... _

_-- Bunko has left the channel._

"That was weird... could someone have hacked her account?" Mikado whispered to himself, staring hard at the scrollback on the monitor. He found himself checking Bunko's websites to see if any other strange things had occured. There was nothing out of the ordinary, just the same old journal entry from months ago. "What could have happened...?"

"Tanaka... Tarou..." the voice behind him made the teen jump.

"Eh! ... my screen name... yeah," he stuttered, holding his chest. The girl had been so silent, he didn't notice her wake up and sneak behind him, so much he could have had a heart attack. Turning his attention to her, he decided to take a chance at something. "Can you tell me... who it was you were trying to find earlier?"

She was quiet and unresponsive for a couple minutes, just staring at him that it became awkward for the boy. "Ori...hara... Izaya."


	5. Ever Present

A/N: I love you, Hijiribe Ruri. You are my goddess. Chapter is shorter than intended.

I'm peeved, my text format in the other chapters... screwed. Anyway, Fanfict decided to mess with my story, don't be afraid if you're reading back all the chapters and some parts just don't seem to connect. It's because Fanfiction took out my "--" that seperate different sections of the chapter. Hopefully it'll make sense still, I really don't want to go back and upload everything again.

Disclaimer: I do not own Durarara!, for the last time.

Warning! OOCness.

* * *

**Penalty Game**

Chapter 5:  
Ever Present

* * *

Ryuugamine Mikado stared at the girl with wide eyes, as if she were crazy. When she didn't say anything else, he crossed out the hope she was joking. "Orihara Izaya?" he repeated, hoping she would correct him with a different name. She didn't do as he had anticipated and nodded in confirmation at the name he repeated. It took him awhile to comprehend the situation, because he was currently remembering the past encounters with the dangerous information broker.

Masaomi had told him to stay clear of the broker one time. And then another time, he had experienced an event where Heiwajima Shizuo hurled a large convenience store trash can at the man, who recovered in only a second's time.

"Why are you looking for him?"

"I got lost," she stated bluntly, clearly not embarassed as most would seem when admitting such.

"Um, do you know what he was doing here, in Ikebukuro?" he asked, scratching the back of his head. Something in his head was telling him he'd have to ask a lot of questions to get the girl to talk; frank, to-the-point questions. Her lips began to move, but nothing came out. She pursed them in thought and then continued to stare at Mikado blankly. Staring back, Mikado tried to think of other questions. One in particular came to mind, which would probably useful in... returning her to Izaya. "If you don't mind, what's your name? Mine's Ryuugamine Mikado..."

"It's... Yoshie."

"Alright, Yoshie-san then..." he wanted to ask for her surname, but didn't expect an answer, so he gave up on the thought. "It's kinda late, I can help you tomorrow... in the afternoon, I have school in the morning. You should probably stay here tonight- um, but if you're not comfortable... I have a friend that could..."

"I can stay?" Yoshie smiled somewhat.

"Y-yeah. Are you hungry? You look kinda pale."

The girl shrugged her shoulders, half-expecting the boy to make food magically appear before them. Of course, when the boy stood up and walked away, her hopes were vaguely crushed. In his hand when he returned, was a hot bowl of instant udon, which restored the little happiness she had lost moments earlier. Floating just on top of the noodles was a half a boiled egg that Mikado had probably found rummaging in his fridge for leftovers.

"It's kinda hot, so be careful, 'kay?"

--...

"Haa..." she stuck out her tongue for Mikado to look at, "_Es hawt_."

"I told you it was hot," the black haired student sighed, standing up to go fetch a glass of water before stopping mid-kneel to cover his face. "What are you _doing_?"

Yoshie blinked, as if that were the oddest question someone had asked her. "Taking off... my pants? I did... it all the time... when I was with Izaya," she said thoughtfully, thinking of times she hadn't worn trousers because they made her feel too tight that she would strip them off for better movement. Mikado's expression was priceless, one could explain it as, with his jaw hanging open and cheeks flushed red.

What exactly is your relationship with him? he thought, in awe at the perverted mental image floating in his conscience.

-- the Morning After

"You don't have to follow me to school... I... actually would prefer you not."

Yoshie paid no heed to what he said and continued to tail him, until he eventually stopped walking amd turned to face her. He stood directly in front of her, gave her a glimpse before holding his hand out in between them. "Please go back to the apartment, I'll even take you back. It's weird that you're following me to school... I really don't think you'll find Orihara Izaya there."

"It's a nice day, isn't it?" she said, completely disregarding what he was saying.

"Yes, it is- but you should go back to my apartment... and put on some pants, please."

The girl blinked, gazed long at him, still seeming insensible to the situation. Once again, the two shared a very awkward moment, which was almost unbearable for Mikado. Finally, he put his hand down, but still continued to stare at her with the same unease. He contemplated just walking away, but knew he would feel guilty if something bad happened to her. On the other hand, he was going to be late for class...

"Alright," Yoshie agreed.

"Eh? Really? I mean, alright... that's good. Do you need me to show you back?" He really didn't expect it to be that easy, if anything, he had thought he would have to drag her back there if worst came to worst. For the nth time, she didn't reply to him and ignored him completely. She turned on her heel and began walking in the direction they came. Mikado wondered if she knew where she was going, but as he was about to turn around and follow after her, Kida came up behind him and brought his arms around the black-haired boy's head in a friendly headlock.

"Hey, hey, Mikado! Who was that girl?" he shook the boy under his grip. "Why did she have no pants on? Hey, Miss Striped Undies-"

"Stop it, Masaomi!" Mikado covered the blonde's mouth with his hand. "I'll tell you on our way to school, c'mon."

--...

"Uh-oh! Looks like I've been found!" Izaya laughed, barely escaping being hit by a metal rail of some sort, the ones off the side of a road. He made a run for it, just behind him, he could still hear his name being yelled out by a very angry Heiwajima Shizuo. After a vending machine or other pieces of city property didn't fly right by him, he assumed he had lost the blonde. "He's scarier than usual, isn't he?"

The information broker ran a hand through his short, black hair, stopping in his tracks just before a crosswalk. "I should probably go retrieve Yoshi... by now, she must be running around Ikebukuro pants-less."

--...

"You see! You see! I told you... _Kozato Enma _really was the..." Karisawa Erika babbled, waving around the Weekly Shounen Jump. The newest chapter of Kateikyoushi Hitman Reborn! had been released, and just days before, her and Walker were contemplating on Enma's character and his supposed 'secret'-but-not-really-a-secret indentity. The fujoshi had ended up being very right with her prediction, that even she was quite shocked.

"I can't believe Enma's... him and Tsuna share the same pain! Hee! They would make such a cute pairing... well, maybe as close-knit friends..."

"That's really all you think about while reading shounen," Walker sighed.

"That's not true, Yumacchi!" she gasped, "Well, maybe a little..." Erika giggled, staring hard at a certain page in the magazine. "Anyway, this is the only thing keeping me alive until Bunko-chan updates her webcomic or a new volume of...."

Walker cupped his chin with one hand, draining out Erika's voice as he thought. "Bunko? Sounds familiar..."

"Of course her name is familiar! She's the goddess of BL doujinshi! She has everything from original work to fandoms!" The female otaku exaggerated, latching onto the brown-haired man's arm. She continued to explain more about the author, which was blocked out by Walker, who was trying to sort out his thoughts. Pounding a fist into the palm of his hand, he had one of those 'I remember now' moments where his mouth went 'o' and eyes shined amazed with their own brilliance, in Walker's case, his closed eyes raised dramatically.

"Oh, that one person who used to hang around the Dollars forums all day!" he exclaimed, which stopped Erika's ceaseless ranting.

"Right, right!" Erika realized, now also trying to think back to old conversations in the forums. "I remember this one rumor that she hacked the Dollars website, but it didn't really go anywhere because she didn't troll the forums or anything."

"That's pretty cool," Walker chimed, "What if she's like some hacker for hire? Like those ones that hack big companies... and then they like blackmail them for money!"

"Oh! Like in Liar Game! Only Akiyama Shinichi hacked the company because..."

"Uwah! A striped panties girl running by!" the male otaku yelped, pointing towards a random direction in the horizon that the supposed girl had ran by. His eyes tearful with joy, Walker swayed to and fro with exaggerated bliss. "Today is a blessed day!"

--...

"This place... from before?" Yoshie whispered, looking around the park. It was the same one she had wandered to the other day, only it appeared different in the intense light of mid-day. She looked around, biting down on her lower lip. The park wasn't crowded, very few were loitering its ground, so the figure with a furcoat facing the fountain caught her attention without much difficulty. Sluggishly, she approached Izaya, staring at him through the reflection in the water. "You left, but you knew the whole time..."

"- where you were? Yeah," he sang, moving his gaze to her face, which was still focused to the water. "So, you met him, what do you think?"

"Ryuugamine Mikado seems to avoid talking about you," Yoshie mumbled out, beginning to play with the hem of her shirt. Her mood was dampened, disappointed he could easily leave her to wander a city she didn't know anything about. Trying to hide her disappointment, she stared at Izaya's face, but cleverly avoided staring into those almost red brown eyes of his.

"That's too bad, and to think I came all the way to Ikebukuro to..."

Something caught her attention, unable to pay close attention to what the information broker was saying, although she could clearly see his lips moving.

"Who..." The girl suddenly brought her hands to hold his face, taking a closer look at him, staring hard at a cut that was all too visible on the man's face. Izaya smiled, bringing a finger to his face, tracing the cut along the side of his cheek. It wasn't bleeding, but it was visible and red with a line of raw skin. He hadn't noticed it in the hustle to escape Shizuo and yet as he felt the gap, it began to sting and tingle under his touch, as light and gentle as he tried to be. Yoshie continued to stare wide-eyed, almost amazed that he was 'wounded'.

"Hmm? Must have gotten it in the fight with Shizu-chan."

She grimaced, a first time she showed such an expression while sane. "A lot of people seem to dislike you."

"It seems that way..." Izaya smiled, stroking one of her hands. "Do you also dislike me, Yoshi?"

Unable to think of an answer, she stayed unresponsive, pulling her hands away only to be caught by the broker. He held tight to her wrists and leaned down so he was right in her face, his cola breath on the bridge of her nose. His eyes seemed to narrow but the smile stayed jokingly, but appeared forced somehow. "I said, 'Do you dislike me?'" Izaya repeated harshly, sounding frustrated with Yoshie, still holding that phlegmatic smile on his face. It made the girl shudder, her eyes widening in surprise. She didn't like that expression, it bothered her.

"I love humans very much, you know that," he recited like a speech. "I love you and them very much... so you and every other human should love me back, Yoshi."

There was silence as the two stared at eachother, the girl recovering from the surprise of seeing the broker like that. Finally, she seemed to get a grip on the situation and pursed her lips in thought, until Yoshie replied nonchalantly, "Izaya... I'm scared... of you."

"Really?" Izaya looked at her in mock incredulity, dropping his jaw on purpose. He stayed that way for a few seconds before quickly putting on a grin, sneering on the spot. "Well, I didn't expect you to confess your undying love to me- unless you were going-"

Yoshie jumped on him, biting his ear, earning a groan from the man.

--...

Nausea. The invisible hold on her throat and churning of her stomach was killing her since the station to Izaya's apartment in Shinjuku. It was a discomfort she wasn't used to having, since it moved slowly, torturing her with every swerve of her insides, unlike headaches that only attacked a certain spot of her skull.

"Hey," Izaya prodded a finger down her back, gently enough to make her stiffen in apprehension. "Could _it_ be back..."

"No-o," she said quickly, almost awkwardly, waving her hands in front of her. "I haven't heard the Voice in quite awhile... it's just... I feel sick. Excuse me... but if you don't mind... Does... the Voice has some special meaning to you?"

The information broker hummed, staring at her with a stoic expression. "Have you ever wondered why there's a voice in your head? And why you of all people are _gifted_ with it? It's because you're playing a big role in something... or are about to." He laughed, holding his face in his hands, quivering with excitement. "It means something amazing is going to happen... something real big. And it's going to be very fun. So fun... I might just die from excitement."

"So fun... excitement..." Yoshie repeated, then smiled at him. "- Then I'll... do my best to play this role... for this amazing event that you're looking forward to, Izaya."

* * *

So, uh... I was watching those Death Note Live Action Movies, right... and I thought, "L's English Dubber would make a pretty good Izaya voice." Please tell me I'm not crazy for thinking that. Feel free to observe/listen to it yourself and compare, I just wanted to share the thought.


	6. Fear And Love

A/N: Sorry if my writing seems choppy in this and the last chapter, I've been watching a lot of Baccano! and my thinking has been all over the place recently! So forgive me if you're starting to get a bit agitated.

Is it too late to say that bite to the ear in the last chapter was an action of aggression? Well, it's whatever you want it to be, but was originally intended to shut up Izaya.

... yeah.

Warning! OOCness. And disappointment.

* * *

**Penalty Game**

Chapter 6:  
Fear And Love, The Difference

* * *

The information broker hummed, staring at her with a stoic expression. "Have you ever wondered why there's a voice in your head? And why you of all people are _gifted_ with it? It's because you're playing a big role in something... or are about to." He laughed, holding his face in his hands, quivering with excitement. "It means something amazing is going to happen... something real big. And it's going to be very fun. So fun... I might just die from excitement."

"So fun... excitement..." Yoshie repeated, then smiled at him. "- Then I'll... do my best to play this role... for this amazing event that you're looking forward to, Izaya. I..." She made a face, lips stopping short from words that never came. I didn't mean to say that, she thought to herself in alarm. Unexpectedly her beam widened, showing a very twisted expression that could give the Grudge a run for her money as she attempted to bring her hands up to the man's neck. "... I'll even make it so you can spectate it for eternity."

-...

She stopped short, gasping at the knife pressing threatingly to the back of her neck.

"It's nice you feel that way," Izaya smiled back at her, pressing his flickblade more closely to her throat. He had pulled it out as soon as he saw the out of characteristic smile the girl had shown. "But do you mind telling me who _you _are?"

She laughed, then held her hands up in defeat. "Why, I'm Kokubo Yoshie, of course."

"In a sense... but in actuality, you're the Voice," he press on, whispering into her ear, "If I killed Yoshi, would you be rid of, too?"

"What a scary guy..." her voice came out as Yoshie's original childish vocals, but a masculine tone echoed after, sounding almost mechanical. "Now, now... Yoshie is far to precious to let die. So I'll surrender- besides, isn't she important to your little show? You seem so confident, spouting that nonsense as if you truly believed she would go on following you."

"I wonder, is she precious to _you? _Sure, she would be a great aspect, but it's all experimental. Meaning, she's disposable," he chuckled, starting to move his blade up to Yoshie's forehead. "My, I'm disappointed, you think I was saying that to persuade her? I'm just a very _honest_ person. Starting now. I've never told anyone this, but I believe we should stop global warming, we should reduce, reuse, and recycle! You know? Ahaha! Save the planet- ku... fufu! Either way, she'd definitely listen to me. She's_ totally _in love with me, if you didn't know, Mr. Miss Voice. Just earlier today... you what she told me? "Izaya, I'm scared of you"! Isn't that cute?"

Izaya pulled hard on the girl's hair with one hand, using the other with his flickblade to cut a handful of her overgrown bangs off. "I've always though Yoshi would look cuter with shorter hair."

Yoshie's golden eyes widened, mouth pulled back in a hideous scowl. "Bastard... you bastard! Don't touch her!"

"I can do anything I want with her, Yoshi would let me. Remember, she's _scared_ of me?" the black-haired man sighed, as if he had to repeat a lengthy lecture for the third time. "She's scared of you, too. A different type of fear, but I guess since we both 'make her heart pound fast' the meanings are generally the same. But she never complains much anymore, because _you're_ precious to _me_... Heh! It makes me choke up with happiness at how willing she is to persevere for me!"

"Straight to business..." He pulled on a face that appeared strictly no-more-Mr. Nice Guy, but the demeanor was lost as he broke into a cackle. "Haa... ha! I seriously can't keep a straight face... huff..."

"Stop it!" the Voice yelped, the grip on Yoshie's hair getting tighter and the flickblade hovering closer to the girl's face. In response, Izaya dug the cutting edge just under Yoshie's eye, vertically down her cheek. It was deep enough that blood immediately started flowing down down her chin. The pain, sting of the blade, the Voice wasn't affected by it except agitated that Izaya would dare harm Yoshie. Izaya however, was enjoying himself to fullest extent.

"It's all so new," the information broker crooned, digging the razor lightly into the skin of Yoshie's visible collar bone, "Is it possible? A _Voice_ is protective... perhaps in love with this human? It's so interesting... so fun... so... phenomenally odd!" He raked down the flat of her chest everytime he stopped to breath, panting blissfully as the blade made contact with her skin.

"Orihara Izaya, what a sad bystander you are."

"_What_?" he was about to bring the knife deeper into Yoshie's skin, but as soon as the temptation filled him Yoshie's eyes blinked back to their lifeless shine. Instead of panicking, like a usual person would with a knife so close to their neck, the girl simply held her breath and waited for the man to make his decision. With a sigh, Izaya brought his hand down and flipped the flickblade close, hiding it somewhere on his person. "Oh, it was getting so very fun, Mr. Voice."

-...

Yoshie wrapped gauze around her neck and further down to her chest, staring at herself in the mirror. "Izaya leaves such fine marks," her face heated up as she traced the last of the visible cuts on her body. "... he's scary-"

_I hate him. Hate that man..._

She listened to it complain with wide eyes, it's sudden presence having perturb her, the face on the reflection seeming to scowl back at her. Quickly, she shuffled to button up her shirt and made a dash for it out of the restroom, running down the stairs to Izaya's office, shirt still not completely secure. Barely tripping on the last step, she hopped into Izaya's lap who was sitting in his usual spot at his desk looking over some papers. The chair tilted back and both ended up on the ground, Yoshie sitting up on the man's abdomen.

"Yoshie, if you needed it so badly you could have just told me!" he gasped for air, sniggering with the little breath he had. "Although this is also an arousing approach, heh!"

"_It's_ getting scarier..." Yoshie choked out, taking a handful of his shirt in her hands out of desperation.

He paused to think, slowly moving his hands to her lower back.

"...Scarier than me?" Izaya leered as he caressed her back, sitting up with the girl still straddled on his lap. Shaking her head, she buried her face in his neck and embraced him without reluctance. He thought he heard her whisper, "No, never," but wasn't sure himself that he just assumed she was sniveling. "Are you afraid though? Of _it_? If you are..."

Stroking fingers along her neck, he took hold of her chin and raised her face towards his that their noses brushed against one another. "... Why don't I fill your mind with only thoughts of me?" He inched forward but then stopped, let out a laugh and spoke, "Oh, right. I'm already all you think about, anyway! Ahahaha!"

Yoshie, who had been holding her breath, finally let her lungs give in. Panting softly, she bent forward and kissed the bridge of Izaya's nose, then nuzzled into his neck again. "I want to be all you think of, too."

Rendered speechless, the information broker blinked once. Then twice. Only after blinking a third time did he manage a grin. "Oh, Yoshi! How innocent you are, it really tempts me... You're just so adorable!" Izaya rubbed his cheek against her head, whispering repetitively to her how cute she was, constantly tousling her newly short hair in his fingers. It makes me think that I might even keep you longer than I should, he thought, skimming his lips gently over her forehead.

"Really, Yoshi. You're too cute for your own good."


	7. Really Questionable

A/N: Ah... I'm unhappy with that last chapter, but I'll make due. Well, here's the seventh chapter. Sorry for the long wait!

* * *

**Penalty Game**

Chapter 7:  
Really Questionable

* * *

"I wonder if it was okay... not telling Izaya about _that_," a certain underground doctor whispered aloud to himself. He stared long at the monitor in front of him, which appeared to have a file pulled up. Highlighting a certain part, he seemed to have a conflict on what he should do, eyebrows furrowing in thought. Just as he copied the text with a click of the mouse, his screen froze leaving him unable to do anything. Odd. Very, very unusual. "How can this..."

Just then, the door slid open. It made the young doctor stand up with a gasp. "Ah! Celty! How did today's job go?"

-...

It was true that last incident with the voice seemed awfully real. But it bothered him, Izaya couldn't tell if Yoshie was truly scared or not. Never had he tried proving his theory, but... Maybe this opportunity would give him a chance. It wasn't like he expected her to get hurt, but just in case he would send the Headless Rider there. Can't have an perfectly reusable pawn thrown out so easily.

"Yo-shi-kuuun!" the twenty-three year old man chimed with a curious smile, cupping his face in his hands in such a way you knew he was going to ask a favor probably not worth fulfilling- without something in return, or plenty of coercing. The girl gave him a look from her spot on the sofa, something she regretted as soon as she saw that horrific smirk plastered on his face. Yet she didn't show her displeasure, in the end she would somehow end up doing his bidding.

"I was wondering..." he started off very slowly, sugar-coating his words in an impeccable tone that could send shivers up one's back. "Run an errand for me, yes?"

Silence.

"What do I get in return?" Yoshie replied after much thought.

He didn't cease to smile.

It only took that prolonged smile to break her.

"What do you want me to do?" her voice held no hostility, but genuine curiosity. "Is a VIP coming today, or do you expect..."

"Ah, you can tell that much of me from experience now... Maybe I've kept you here too long?" Izaya started derailing from the subject, but caught himself mid way. "Buuut! Yes! Exactly, a very important client of Shimura Co. is coming today and I want your butt out of here. This errand I want you to run isn't especially important that I would go out my way to cancel this one appointment, so take of it for me, will you?"

"You're just not in the mood to run into Heiwajima Shizuo..." she immediately deciphered, staring at him with a deadpan.

"Eh, I don't even want to talk about Shizu-chan. I'm just not in the mood for having a trash can thrown at me when I'm having such a lovely walk down the sidewalk..." the information broker laughed, a stressed, frustrated and bitter laugh. But a laugh. "...so you'll do it?"

Yoshie paused, stared at him for few seconds in that awkward way she did with people. Then... "Maybe."

-...

She frowned, not that she wasn't already, but it was definitely visible and you could tell she was unhappy.

When she said 'maybe', no place in her mind did she actually want to agree to it. But deep inside, she knew it would come to this. Eventually, just Izaya's suave voice would have been enough to convince her. Maybe it was alright like this, giving in quickly so she wouldn't go through his sly negotiating. Yoshie let out a troubled sigh and zipped up her pants, feeling awkward and tight in them. She would be observing, just observing a little act Izaya had put together.

Or at least that's what he told her.

"Just observe... that's good enough," she murmured, remembering the words of the Voice from a long time ago.

It was less nostalgic than sickening. Her air felt thin just thinking about it, making her caress her throat in hopes of soothing the nausea that was beginning to build. For now, the accursed voice in her head was gone ever since that one episode. She was glad about that, but it being gone for good was to unrealistic to be true. No way did it constantly bother her for that lame of a finale, no, there was definitely something bigger that was going to happen. Like it was waiting, and all that was to alert her of something worse coming her way.

Another sigh, accompanied by a sniffle.

There was no doubt Yoshie was scared, she wasn't afraid to admit it. Even her admiration for Izaya couldn't conquer this growing anxiety, it was like everyday she woke up realizing the reality of things. That sudden burst or realization making your heart beat uncontrollably and breathing become short; much like that waking feeling you get just before something amazing or horrible is about to happen, and you know it is.

"Who was I? For this too happen..."

It was another question of hers she knew there was probably no actual answer too. Simple enough, the answer could as well have been: Kokubo Yoshie.

-...

All she needed to do was watch, Yoshie knew that. But what if she had an urge to jump in? What if she couldn't stop herself from wanting a closer look or even taking part in it? Izaya probably already knew the answer to that, and wanted to see the outcome of her almost human urges. Probably wanted to jeer in amusement and feel his ego boost when he found out his prediction was right. It was like everything was predetermined, inevitable. No one can challenge fate (in this case, it seems like Izaya could be trying to play fate itself), but even that seemed possible in Ikebukuro. Because one way or another, somehow even that connected into the chain.

"Black Rider will show up, won't they?" she said aloud, trying to hear her own voice above the wind. "And all I have to do... is see how this plays out..."

-...

Oh, how could he have been so naive. To jump to the conclusion that everything was almost supernatural, really...

Izaya was beginning to doubt Yoshie, rather found her phony. Her act was beginning to slip and recently all he saw was a normal human, but she was still usable. And until he came to a solid compromise, the information broker would keep her as long as he could. Looking back at everything he had gathered about her, he didn't find out much he didn't see the first time. But... There was something about her in the files that left a big gap in the information he needed. But what was it? Before he had tried to pry deeper but found nothing. It wasn't like someone had hid it, or deleted it on purpose. More like it was never there in first place, like it just disappeared from every computer server on earth.

Apparently, she was living quite a normal life until her disappearance.

Normal family with a pet, though some relatives deceased. Moved to Japan from America because she wanted a new change in scenery, was able to attend a University early because of a jump-start she had in Highschool. It didn't seem like anything was out of place. Before her disappearance, apparently she went to consult a counselor about voices she'd hear when she was alone. Of course, they couldn't come up with any clear results before she disappeared. So even that information was unreliable...

Yet there was the hacking of the Dollars' website. Kokubo Yoshie had no experience in computer technology, never had a laptop until middle school and only ever used it to pursue her manga/anime hobby. She could have done individual studying, but hacking of that caliber... and then there was the chatroom trolling. It was much like Saika's case, but it was less frequent. Saika seemed to appear whenever the Slasher struck, but what was it that made Bunko log in?

"She wasn't active in the Dollars, probably didn't even know she was a member... so maybe," Izaya pursed his lips in thought. "Someone else is behind this? Maybe little Miss Kokubo is just a decoy... Then I have the wrong person. I see now, it's actually..."

-...

"He says I'll know when I see it... but that thought seems to scare me," Yoshie mumbled, staring at the road below. Right now she was watching from a rooftop of a building long closed down, which was probably scheduled to be demolished soon. It was probably the most safest place to watch despite that, it meant the chances someone else would go up there so late at night were little to none. At least... she hoped.

Taking her eyes off the street, she took a look around. The area she was in was more of a storage area, but not so far away you could see the lights of a busy Ikebukuro. She watched with sad eyes, it would have been great if she never lost her memory. Maybe she would be roaming the streets like a normal Ikebukuro-ian.

She took out a cellphone, one Izaya leant her. It was pink and an eyesore. "Half past the hour... it's been twenty minutes... I'm starting to-"

Gunshot, followed by a screeching noise- like a car's tires against the cement as it comes to an abrupt stop. Looking down, she noticed she was very spot on with the car guess, but the gunshot she had heard was just the car slamming into a guardrail. Now she was waiting, just waiting for someone to come out. Was this the show? It would have been way too coincidental to not be. Then another bang roared in the air, causing Yoshie to freeze. It was definitely a gun.

How was she sure this time?

The bullet flew right past her and whistled by her ear, the gunshot left her deaf for a few moments and paralyzed. She wasn't sure where it came from, but she knew she was being shot at. The gunner aimed, it wasn't a misfire. What were the chances she would somehow be pulled into a situation like this? How about with Izaya in the equation? Yup, odds are this was definitely going to happen.

Yoshie took a breath and savored it, feeling thankful to be alive for those few seconds of being dazed. She backed up and made her way to the exit, looking around. Scared couldn't even explain how frightened she was at this moment. If she couldn't handle streets full of people she didn't know, how in the world could she handle trying to be killed. Another gunshot, the next one just grazing her leg. "Why..." her vision became shaky in desperation. "How did it become this dangerous just watching...?"

_You were never meant to be an observer._

"What's wrong with being an witness?" the girl cried, turning the doorknob on the emergency exit. "Even if it were for _him_- I would never want to be caught up anymore than I am! Because... 'cause that's the type of person I am!"

_It looks like you're back, Yoshie._

Once wide eyes closed, rested between bewilderment and acceptance.

"Ha... so they weren't actually spirits that were bothering me..." Yoshie whispered to herself, clutching at her chest. "I'm connected to..."

At her sudden realization, her expression became unsettling. She took a deep breath, still clutching at chest as if her heart could leap out at any moment. It started to make sense now, but the more it made sense, the more confusing it got. This situation she was in, it felt unreal but that made it even more believable. Just as she opened the door to the exit, a hand from behind grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back. It was a moment she knew would happen the further she got wound up into things, but...

"Please... sorry, I'm sorry!" Yoshie stumbled to say as she was forcibly turned around to face the person. "So... please don't..."

... she couldn't help but beg for mercy, because she was only human.

-...

"... a copycat incident."


	8. AUTHOR'S NOTE

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

It has been a year since I last updated, but I continue receiving notifications of people adding this to their alerts. I apologize for such a long hiatus and plan on rewriting this fanfiction, with major changes to the plot- scratch that, I will actually be giving it a plot. Once again, I'm sorry it's taken so long to take up this fanfiction again and I hope I won't disappoint any of you with the chapters to come.


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